By Week 480. Summer 2025. I am 42 years old and standing in my kitchen — the Bench house kitchen, the one that held cancer and divorce and cinnamon rolls — and the stove is on and something is cooking and the house smells like grilled food and garden herbs and this is my life. This is the life I built.
Tom made his trout on Friday, the way he does every Friday, and the fish was perfect, and the kitchen smelled like lemon and capers, and I sat at the table and ate fish that my partner caught and cooked and served, and the being-served is still a wonder after all these years.
Mason is 14 and navigating middle school with the quiet competence that has always been his way — focused, kind, certain of who he is in a way that took me thirty years to achieve.
Lily is 12 and riding horses with the fearlessness of someone who has never considered the possibility of falling.
I made garden ratatouille this week. The food continues. The food always continues. It is the thread that connects every week to every other week, every year to every other year, every version of me to every other version — the woman on the kitchen floor, the woman at the chemo recliner, the woman at the grill, the woman at the outdoor table under the string lights. All of them, connected by the food they made with their hands. All of them, me.
Ratatouille used the last of what the garden had to give this week, but Brussels sprouts have been coming in steadily, and I wasn’t ready to let the season go without putting something up. Pickling feels right for a week like this one — an ordinary week, a grateful week, a week that deserves to be kept. These go into jars the same way memories go into five hundred and eighty weeks of writing: held, labeled, set on a shelf where you can find them later.
Pickled Brussels Sprouts
Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 10 minutes | Total Time: 30 minutes + 48 hours resting | Servings: 16 (makes 2 pint jars)
Ingredients
- 1 lb Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
- 1 cup white wine vinegar
- 1 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 cup water
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 4 sprigs fresh dill
Instructions
- Blanch the sprouts. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the halved Brussels sprouts and blanch for 2 minutes. Transfer immediately to an ice bath to stop cooking, then drain well and pat dry.
- Prepare the jars. Sterilize 2 pint-sized mason jars and lids by running them through the dishwasher on the hottest cycle or submerging in boiling water for 10 minutes. Set aside on a clean towel.
- Make the brine. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the white wine vinegar, apple cider vinegar, water, kosher salt, and sugar. Stir until the salt and sugar dissolve completely, about 3—4 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Pack the jars. Divide the garlic slices, peppercorns, mustard seeds, red pepper flakes, and dill sprigs evenly between the two jars. Pack the blanched Brussels sprouts tightly into the jars, cut side down.
- Pour the brine. Ladle the hot brine over the Brussels sprouts, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace at the top of each jar. Tap the jars gently on the counter to release any air bubbles. Seal the lids fingertip-tight.
- Rest and refrigerate. Allow jars to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 48 hours before opening to allow the flavors to develop. Pickles will keep refrigerated for up to 1 month.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 18 | Protein: 1g | Fat: 0g | Carbs: 4g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 210mg